SpringFest begins tonight and the hype is building for the high-calibre talent scheduled to take the stage.
    Alongside powerhouses like Harry Manx and the Kirby Sewell Band are local artists, proud and excited to get the chance to play at SpringFest.
    “One of our mandates is to showcase local artists and up-and-comers,” said Brent Noland, producer of SpringFest.
    Darren Smylie, who was raised in Drumheller, is excited for his first chance to play at SpringFest. He’ll be performing material from his new album, Secondary Succession of Mind.

Darren Smylie makes SpringFest debut with new album, Secondary Succession of Mind.

    “I’ve been going to SpringFest since I was 12-years-old. Now, I’m finally playing. It’s going to be all original music for me. This will be the first time I’ll be doing music from the album I wrote in December,” said Smylie.
    The Drumheller Mail/inSide Drumheller’s very own Devon Syvertsen is one of the local artists who will be making their SpringFest debut this year.

Devon Syvertsen hits the stage at SpringFest with original material.

    “It feels great. I was surprised when I got the call. It’s really neat to finally pursue that dream, I’ve been wanting to be in SpringFest for a long time,” said Syvertsen. “I’m going to take this opportunity to show off my original material. I’ll intersperse a few covers to fill space, which will be songs people probably haven’t really heard around town.”
    Syversten has been recording original material since 2011 and is hoping to release his first album at DinoFest in June.
    This year’s SpringFest will be the re-debut of Drumheller native Noel Spooner, who’s coming off a long hiatus after moving back to Drumheller 13 years ago.
    “We were talking and he (Noland) had a couple guitars lying around, so he asked me to sing a song. I did, and he sat back and said I was hired,” said Spooner. “I’m glad he got me out of my comfort zone.”
    Spooner had a long music career, which took her from Calgary, the Northwest Territories, to Vancouver. She then lived in Grande Prairie briefly and came back to Drumheller after a near death experience with flesh eating disease.
    She’s excited to offer a huge range of music for SpringFest fans.
    “I have my songs picked, but I just have too many to choose from. It’s going to be tough fitting it in an hour. I’ve got some country, some rock, a little blues, and some originals,” said Spooner.
    Other local artists include the Fire Coulee Bandits, Roadside Attraction, Cat Country Cougar Hunters and Courtney Morse, Jessica Nelson, and Allen Rapadas with Alas, the Ocean.
    SpringFest has been picking up momentum over the past few years, with the number of performers wishing to play for the festival growing.
    “It’s fan-freakin-tastic! The lineup this year, like every year, just gets better. I had 95 applications for 44 slots. We had to shut down the applications a month early. I already have received an application for 2014,” said Noland.
    The musicians volunteer their time and all proceeds go towards maintaining and improving the East Coulee School Museum.
    “The musicians are volunteering their craft. They’re spending their own gas money, so we’re incredibly grateful to them. It’s really humbling,” said Noland.
    SpringFest begins on Friday, May 10 and lasts until Saturday, May 12.

    It was a great day to go for a walk.
    On Sunday, May 5, the hiking trail between the Homestead Museum and Drumheller Valley Secondary School was filled with runners and walkers participating in the annual Enerflex MS Walk.
    Organizers of the event were overjoyed with the turnout, which saw 150 people, up from 97 last year, show their support for helping those with multiple sclerosis (MS), a degenerative neurological disease.
    “I think it went pretty spectacularly. We had higher participation this year than we’ve had for the past three or four years in Drumheller,” said Shauna Brown, MS Walk coordinator. “It means a lot to the services that are provided to the clients who have MS in our area. With this, we’ll be able to work harder to support them.”
    Overall, sponsorship was up by 53 per cent and pledges up 40 per cent. As of Monday afternoon, the walk had raised $35,000, but the total continues to climb.
    “By May 17 I think we will have surpassed our goal of $40,000,” said Brown. “Considering the whole of Alberta was down seven per cent, Drumheller was superb.”
    There were also a large number of young volunteers helping and walking.
    “We had a lot of younger volunteers this time around too. It was a really heartwarming family event. Everybody had a fun time,” said Brown.
    Enerflex, like those who were volunteering and walking, pitched in their support, donating $1.3 million to the MS Society of Canada since 1998.
    “We started out in 1998, supporting an employee with MS, then things have just grown from there. Over the last five years, we’ve had a team in every walk across the province. It’s a big deal for us and we put a lot of time and effort into it. It makes a big difference. Hopefully someday we will beat it,” said Justin Francois, Enerflex account representative for the prairie region.
    The hope is the walk will continue to grow and, perhaps, more events throughout the year.
    “I would like to see us do more than one event,” said Brown. “It keeps us in the forefront and reminds us that there are people in the community that have MS.”

The Drumheller Titan cheerleaders, the Angels, led the charge at the MS Walk on Sunday, May 5.

Lorraine Evans-Cross (left), regional director of the Central Alberta MS Society of Canada chapter, cheers as Justin Francois, account representative prairie region for Enerflex, presents a cheque representing their 15 year, $1.3 million, commitment to the MS Society of Canada.